March 10th
by Runner043
Summary: March 10th is Steve McGarrett's birthday, and you are invited to the party via this story, at least . He hasn't had a party since he was 15... it's time to make up for that.
1. Chapter 1

According to the season 1 finale, where Jenna Kaye was looking at info on Steve, and according to confirming Tweets by HF-0 producer Peter Lenkov, March 10th (1977) is Steve's birthday.

I issued a 'Steve's Birthday Challenge' over at the Hawaii Five-0 ProBoards, and am extending that here as well... so, write a story. It can be a surprise party, or not. Hosted, or not. Or maybe about what else Steve might do on his birthday (other than a party), either alone or with others. Please have it posted by March 10th. Or if it's a multi-chapter, at least the first chapter by March 10th.

For the case of my story, Steve hasn't had a real party since his 15th birthday, which was just before his mother died. And as an adult, well, the past 8 years anyway, he has spent his birthdays with Catherine.

**HAWAII FIVE-0 **  
><strong>"MARCH 10th" chapter 1<strong>

March 10th, 8:30am...

'He just left for work. Doesn't suspect a thing.' Was the text message Lieutenant Catherine Rollins sent. She wasn't used to lieing to her boyfriend Lieutenant Commander Steve McGarrett, but she had gone to a lot of trouble to keep this a secret and she just couldn't risk his finding out about it now.

She put her cell phone down on the kitchen counter as she began her project for the day, but her mind kept thinking back to the lie she had told him last night. And again this morning. Okay, technically it was one lie, she'd just had to say it twice. And it was a little white lie. The kind that don't really count. Damn, now she was lieing to herself, too.

The previous evening, March 9th, 8:30pm...

"Danny was right. That was a nice restaurant." She'd said to him last night as they returned to his house.

"I'll be sure to re-phrase that when I tell him, so as not to include the part about him being right." He had replied in a teasing tone.

"I just wish we could have had this dinner tomorrow night." She commented.

"Tonight, tomorrow night, I'm just surprised we made it to dinner this time." He said, wrapping an arm around her waist.

"I just wish I didn't have to leave early." She complained.

"Orders are orders." He reminded her unnecessarily.

"I know. I just don't like breaking our tradition. I want to be here for your birthday." She said as they headed for the stairs.

Back to morning, March 10th...

Catherine sighed heavily, thinking about their conversation the previous night. They had spent every one of Steve's birthdays together since they both worked in Naval Intelligence. It was a tradition they would keep again this year, but Steve didn't know that. Her lie again this morning saw to that.

"What time do you ship out?" He had asked.

"Not until 1300 hours, but I have to be at Pearl at 1100." She had said.

"Well, I've gotta get going. I've got a meeting with the Governor in less than an hour." He said as he grabbed his phone and keys.

"Since I won't be here tonight, and since I have some time before I have to leave, I'm going to put you a nice birthday dinner in the crock pot for you." She said.

The lie hadn't been hard to come up with, and it would help explain the smell of food coming from Steve's house when he got home tonight, but it still felt wrong to lie to someone you care about.

She put on some music to help rid her mind of those thoughts as she began to prepare a lot of food for tonight's surprise party.

6:25pm...

"I've got beer, Danny. You didn't need to stop for more." Steve said as his partner pulled up in the driveway behind him and exited the Camaro.

"I'm not letting the birthday boy buy the beer for his own birthday drink, Steven." Danny stated as they headed for the front door.

"Whatever you say, Danny." Steve said agreeably as he unlocked his front door and turned off the alarm.

"Hey, you holding out on me, man?" Danny asked.

"What?" Steve countered as he turned on a lamp to light the living room.

"That smell. You've been holding back on your cooking skills, haven't you? What is that, Italian? I know Italian, and that's Italian." Danny ranted.

"Sorry, Danny. Between RMEs and the Navy's mess hall on a 10 minute rotation schedule, I didn't have time to perfect my skills as a chef." Steve said.

"Yeah, yeah, okay, but that doesn't explain the smell of Italian food that is coming from your kitchen." Danny said, heading for said room.

"Catherine said she would put something in the crock pot before she left." Steve informed his partner.

"Ah, a little compensation for her early departure." Danny guessed.

Steve just nodded, grabbed two beers and headed out the back door onto the lanai.

"SURPRISE!"

**HAWAII FIVE-0**

Okay, so who thinks surprising an armed Navy SEAL is a good idea?  
>Chapter 2 posted soon.<p> 


	2. Meet The Party Guests

There are a few things in life that should just never be attempted. It's actually quite a long list if you take the time to think about it. Yelling 'surprise' to an armed Navy SEAL is somewhere towards the top of that list.

Not that that thought hadn't occurred to Catherine,... and Danny,... and Chin,... and Kono, and,... well, pretty much everyone involved in the planning of this little surprise party for Steve's 35th birthday. They knew him so well.

Which is exactly why it was a unanimously decided that it should be Danny who arrived at Steve's house with him after work, and Danny who walked out onto the lanai right behind him. Ya know, just in case.

"Whoa! Whoa. Whoa there, Super SEAL." Danny said firmly from behind Steve while placing a hand on his right elbow as he reached instinctively for his gun. "That would definitely be biting the hand that feeds you, literally, in this case." He added, surprised that Steve hadn't dropped the two Longboards still in his left hand.

Danny's voice and calming gesture gave Steve the moment he needed to look around and see friendly smiling faces, lots of them, which in turn calmed him enough to let him look beyond those faces... a fully set table, decorative string lights, lots of food and beer.

"Happy birthday, Sailor." Catherine's voice said as it invaded his mental inventory. But it was only when her arm looped through his that he fully realized that she was not on the Enterprise.

"Cath." He breathed out as he turned to her, a look of shock still on his face. "What the-?"

"Happy birthday, Steve." Chin called out as he stepped forward, glad that he could finally move.

Since Catherine was busy getting the last of the food onto the buffet she had set up, it was Kono's job to watch for a text from Danny indicating that they were on their way, then get all the guests out onto the lanai, while Catherine re-set the alarm on the front door, turn off the lights, and locked the back door so the house would appear as it should. That also meant all the guests had to sit perfectly still until the birthday boy arrived, so they wouldn't trip the motion sensor on the lights above the lanai. Dealing with Steve's security was something that had to be well thought out in advance.

"Thanks, Chin." Steve replied, shaking the man's outstretched hand.

Kamekona was next to greet Steve with birthday wishes and a man-slap on the back. Then came Malia, Joe, and Kono as Steve began working his way around his crowded lanai. Charlie and Max were next, then Steve felt a tug on his shirt and turned to see Grace looking up at him.

"Gracie!" He greeted as he nealt down to hug her.

"Happy birthday, Uncle Steve." She gushed with a huge smile as she squeezed tight around his neck. "I'm so glad you're here. We had to sit out here in the dark and be real still and quiet so the lights wouldn't come on and ruin the surprise. And I've had to keep your party a secret since before we went hiking last weekend." The little girl rambled off.

"That's a long time, Grace." He said, watching her pigtails bounce as she nodded in agreement, "I'm just glad you're here." He added, giving her another hug.

"Hey, big brother, save some for me." He heard as he looked up at the familiar voice coming from behind Grace.

"Mary Ann." He breathed out as he let go of the little girl and stood fully. The look of shock returning to his face.

'Happy birthday, big brother." She said with a shy smile at feeling all eyes on them both.

"Oh my God." He said, stepping up to her with open arms. "When did you get here?" He finally asked as he stepped back from their embrace.

"This morning." She answered. "Malia picked me up from the airport."

"She did, did she?" He asked as he glanced in Malia's direction and wondered how many people had been in on this gig.

"Yes, she did." Mary Ann confirmed. "And then Joe and I spent this after noon hauling these picnic tables here from Kamakona's Shrimp Shack." She stated, referring to the two end-to-end picnic tables that would adeqiately seat everone there. "And it was Danny who has been texting us all day as to your whereabouts, and Grace who hung the lights." She said, gesturing to Danny, who stood with his hands on the shoulders of his still smiling daughter. "And it was Kono who used the resources of her large family to acuire all the large serving dishes for all the food your girlfriend has been cooking for the last two days." She added, gesturing to the two women.

Steve took a step back, completely overwhelmed. "I can't believe you all did this." He said, one hand on his hip, the other running down his face.

"I'm gonna add," Catherine began as she stepped forward and got his attention, "that Chin sprung for all the beer. Charlie brought the extra coolers for the beer, and it was Max that brought all the ice." She said, not mentioning that the ice machine was located in the morgue.

"So, it literally took all of you to pull this off." He stated in amazement.

"You are not exactly an easy person to surprise, Mr. Curious." Danny said as he approached. "Happy birthday, Steven." He added, pulling his partner in for a man-hug.

"Thanks, Danny." Was all Steve could manage to say to say.

"And for the record, Catherine did most of it." Danny said, looking to her, "I mean, look at all this food." He added, gesturing to the buffet that was set up.

But Steve looked at Catherine insead, "Two days?" He asked, referring to what his sister had said.

"I will neither confirm, nor deny." She said to tease him, then turned to talk to everyone, "But since we're on the subject and since everyone is probably hungry, let me explain a few things. I've lined the food up by year,... starting at this end is Callaloo Fritters, from when Steve and I were in Jamaica in 2003 for his 26th birthday. Then you have Moquenca Baiana from when we were in Brazil in 2004,-" She continued on through the dishes representing Germany, Texas, Italy, Morocco, Thailand, and Mexico, where they had been on Steve's birthdays over the years, ending with Ahi Poke from the previous night right there in Hawaii.

"The pictures are a great touch." Malia said to Catherine from across the table twenty minutes later as they were all seated and eating. There was a photo and note to go with each food dish, telling where it was taken, what year it was and how old Steve was.

"We made sure to take a picture each year. I've kept them in a little photo album and it's turned into a special memory." Catherine replied.

"Ya know, Steven," Danny began to talk around a mouth full of food to the man seated at the head of the long table, "I'm not surprised by the one of you two sailing in Brazil, but did a double-take at you two skiing in Italy."

"First of all, Danny, we weren't just sailing, we were marlin fishing. And just because there's no snow here, doesn't mean I don't ski." Steve stated.

"Actually, Steve," Max began, rather pleased with himself for remembering to call the man by his first name this time, "there is snow here in Hawaii if you go to a high enough elevation. Mauna Kea, for example-"

Steve soon tuned out Max as he began some long, and verbally jerky, explination, in favor of taking in the people around him. Chin was seated to his right and he'd noticed the man had developed a habit of playing with his wedding ring. Marriage had suited him so well. His bride Malia next to him had a polite smile on her face as she was still listened to Max who was surprisingly comfortable in the group, perhaps because he had a topic that was of interest to him. Danny sat next to him, but his attention was towards his daughter who was insistant on eating 2011's dish of ham & pineapple pizza. Joe was seated at the far end of the table, like some sort of matriarch, or at least he seemed to be in Steve's life since losing his father. Kamekona was to Joe's right, he may have been an ex-con, but he had become a part of their family. Then came his sister Mary Ann. He'd been so surprised to see her and looked forward to spending time with her in the days ahead. Next to her was Charlie, who was talking to Kono, and Steve wondered if she had as big of a crush on him as he did on her. Just as he looked to Catherine, who was seated to his left, he realized she was talking to him.

"Steve." Was all she said with her hand on his arm while gesturing to Danny who had been trying to get his attention.

"Ah, yes, earth to Steven." Danny smirked at finally getting his partner's attention, but Steve ignored that part. He had been drawn in by the people around him and the effects they had each had on his life in the last year and a half. "Now that we have been assured by Dr. Freeze here," He said, referring to Max's one-sided discussion on snow, "that there is indeed snow here in Hawaii. I would like to know about 2005."

"2005?" Steve asked, his brow furrowed.

Danny rolled his eyes, "Yes, Steven. 2005. Ya know, the picture with you clearly in a hospital bed. The picture over by the Spargel & Bratwurst. Frankfurt, Germany. That 2005." He explained with accompanying hand waves towards the buffet and said picture.

"Yeah, I was in a hospital." Steve confirmed. He also heard a noise that sounded like his gate opening.

"And?" Danny proded in an exasperated tone.

"And,... the rest is classified." Steve answered, hearing footsteps in the grass.

"Clas-?" Danny began, and everyone was just sure there was a really good rant on the way. Everyone but Steve and Joe, that is.

**HAWAII FIVE-0**

Here is a list of the years represented & Steve's age, where they were, and what dish Catherine had made to represent that country.

2003/26 - Montego Bay, Jamaica (Callaloo Fritters)  
>200427 - Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (Moqueca Baiana)  
>200528 - Frankfurt, German - (spargel & Bratwurst)  
>200629 - Dallas, Texas (Texas Caviar)  
>200730 - Salerno, Italy (Agnolotti)  
>200831 - Melilla, Morocco (Couscous & Lemon Chicken)  
>200932 - Bangkok, Thailand (Spring Rolls)  
>201033 - La Mira, Mexico (Encheladas)  
>201134 - Honolulu, Hawaii (Ham & Pineapple Pizza)  
>201235 - Honolulu, Hawaii (Ahi Poke)

Since Steve & Catherine met in Naval Intelligence, I included his 2 years with Five-0, his 6 years as a SEAL, and the last 2 of his 5 years in N.I.

So, is the noisey gate and footsteps just a late guest, or an uninvited guest?  
>Stay tuned for chapter 3 so you can find out.<p> 


	3. It's Classified!

**"March 10th" chapter 3**

Steve tightened his grip on his gun as his eyes searched the dark area  
>beyond the lanai, his ears tuned to the sound of faint footsteps in the grass<br>and on the walkway.

"You're not giving away classified information, are you, Sir?" Came a voice from the edge of the lanai.

Steve relaxed immediately at recognizing the voice. He gave a slight nod and an even slighter smile to Joe, who had locked eyes with him when both men heard the gate to the back yard open. SEAL training engrained in them for life. Steve descretely reholstered his gun, as he had kept it concealed under the table, before standing. "Beamer."

"It's good to see you, Commander McGarrett, Sir." Lieutenant Tiko Durbin said as he stopped short of the man and saluted. There was no mistaking how the man had earned the nickname 'Beamer'. Durbin was a very tall man with very dark skin. One could easily figure out that if he were dressed in all black that the only part of him anyone would be able to see at night were his eyes.

Steve returned the salute and extended a hand to shake. "It's good to see you, Beamer."

"Happy birthday, Sir." Durbin said with a smile as he pulled his former CO in for a man-hug.

"Tiko, I'm so glad you made it." Catherine said as she approached.

"Lieutenant Rollins, thank you for inviting us, ma'am." Tiko said, shaking hands with her before draping his left arm around the shoulder of the woman who had approached beside him, "I believe you both remember my wife Molly."

Molly Durbin was a civilian and just the oposite of her husband when it came to their appearance; short with fair skin and long auburn hair.

"Of course we do." Catherine said before turning to the woman, "It's so good to see you, Molly."

"It's great to see you again, Catherine." Molly replied, both women greeted with a hug.

"Well, this is new." Steve said to Molly after a gentle hug.

"Well, not quite new anymore. Just nine weeks to go." Molly said as her husband placed a hand on her pregnant belly.

"I can't believe you guys are here." Steve said.

"Catherine called us nearly a month ago." Molly informed him, causing Steve to give a sideways glance to his girlfriend.

"Wouldn't miss it for anything, Sir." Durbin added. "And," He paused as they heard the gate open again, "I'm not the only one."

"Well, come on over and grab a plate." Catherine invited them as Steve waited where he was to find out who else was arriving.

A moment later Lieutenant Benjamine Hawkes walked up the path and approached the steps to the lanai, "Permission to come aboard, Sir." He requested in jest.

"Permission granted, Hawkeye." Steve replied.

Hawkes came up the steps and onto the lanai, "Happy birthday, Commander McGarrett, Sir." The tall man with sandy blond hair greeted with a salute.

Steve returned the salute and was promptly given a man-hug.

A few minutes later the Durbins and Hawkes all had full plates. Joe had moved over to the end of the long side of the picnic table by Grace as the Durbins pulled up an extra chair to both sit at the end, while Hawkes sqeezed in between Mary Ann and Charlie.

"Steve, now that everyone has arrived, why don't you do the introductions." Catherine suggested.

Steve nodded to her then gestured first to the man at his right as he began working his way around the table, "This is Lieutenant Chin Ho Kelly. My father was Chin's training officer and we now work together at Five-0. Next to him is his bride Dr. Malia Waincroft-Kelly. This is Dr. Max Bergman with HPD's M.E. office. Next is my Five-0 Partner Detective Danny Williams and his daughter Grace. I believe you all know retired Lieutenant Commander Joe White. Joe was our SEAL trainer." Steve paused at seeing that Hawkes and the Durbin's were not aware that Joe had retired. "At the far end is Lieutenant Tiko Durbin, but those of us from SEAL Team 4 call him 'Beamer', and his wife Molly Malone-Durbin. Next to them is Kamekona, who needs no more intruduction, because you can tell by his shirt that he owns the Shrimp Shack." Steve paused again as everyone laughed at Kamekona's big grin. "Next to him is my sister Mary Ann who has come all the way from Los Angeles. Then comes Lieutenant Benjamine Hawkes, known to those of us from SEAL Team 4 as 'Hawkeye'. This is Charlie Fong, who works as a CSI at the HPD Crime Lab. Officer Kono Kalakaua is Chin's cousin and part of the Five-0 Task Force. And this beautiful lady here, who is apparently responsible for instigating this gathering, is Lieutenant Catherine Rollins." Steve concluded as he took Catherine's hand and watched her blush slightly.

"Lieutenant Hawkes," Danny said to get the man's attention, "I'm assuming your nickname 'Hawkeye' is not exactly classified information."

"No, Sir, it's not." Hawkes responded with a smirk.

"Please, call me Danny." Danny requested.

"Alright, Danny. Actually it's kind of the obvious; my name, especially my last name, the fact that I'm the team medic, and probably most significantly was the fact that I arrived in the Navy with the nickname because my father was a big M*A*S*H fan." He explained, which got quite a laugh around the table

"Hey, Boss." Kono spoke up to get his attention, "With you bouncing all over the world while in the SEALs, how did you and Catherine manage to spend all your birthdays together?" She asked, raising a question that most at the table had wondered about as well.

Kono studied his face as she could tell he was contemplating how to answer her question. His expression was a mixture of happy memories with some sadness thrown in. The table grew mostly quiet as everyone seemed to be waiting to hear his answer.

"I was a Lieutenant Junior Grade in Naval Intelligence when I was part of a recovery mission . Petty Officer Noah Chapman was," Steve paused to think of a proper way to speak so he wouldn't scare Grace, "well, he needed to be brought home and I was lead on the dive." He paused, this time to controle his emotions. "When I finally found him, he was pinned under a piece of the submarine and, well, let's just say I could only manage to unwedge his dogtags and remove his name patch and bars from his uniform." The image of Chapman's face, half-eaten by sea creatures, forever in his memory, as the rest of his body lay crushed from the chest down by the weight of the submarine he had once been assigned to.

"Steve dove deeper than he should have and stayed down longer than he should have to bring those back to Chapman's family." Joe added in a somber tone.

The table was silent for a moment before Durbin spoke up, "To leaving no man behind, Sir." He said as he raised his beer bottle.

The other SEALs at the table; Joe, Hawkes, and Steve, each silently raised theirs as well before drinking.

"Petty Officer Chapman's father was a Captain and his grandfather a Rear Admiral." Catherine said to continue the explination, "They were very appraciative to get those things back and to have some kind of closure for their family. Since Petty Officer Chapman's birthday was the same day as Steve's-"

"They made sure he got his birthday off every year." Kono deduced.

Catherine nod in confirmation. "I always thought it was their way of remembering him with honor each year. And you're right. Otherwise, there's no way Steve would have gotten leave for his birthday, let alone every year."

"They've made sure Catherine gets leave that same time, too." Steve added, "Which has worked out great for us because her birthday is next Thursday, the 15th." He added, wanting to shift some attention off of himself.

"Same day as your dad's." Chin chimed in at immediately recognizing the date.

Soon the conversation had turned to SEAL missions, with so many of the civilian guests curious about the exciting and dangerous adventures. Catherine left the table as Steve, Joe, Hawkes, and Durbin all said in unison, "It's classified", again. She laughed to herself at how animated Danny would show his frustration, but she knew it was best. National security aside, there was a 9 year old at the table and some things just didn't need to be heard.

She returned just a minute later, carrying dessert on a large tray.

"Oreos?" Most everyone at the table asked in unison as she set the unusual alternative to a birthday cake in the center of the long table.

"Are we to assume there is another story behind this, Steven?" Danny guessed.

But Steve and the other SEALs were too busy laughing to answer him.

"No, no, no, no, Smooth Dog." Durbin laughed out to cut the man off. Not that it was necessary, as Steve wasn't done laughing yet, either. "You've gotta let me tell this one."

Steve just gave him a silent wave of agreement, and Durbin took a few deep breaths to stifle his own laughter so he could tell the story. "Our team had just finished an op and the Tangos were secured. We were returning to base when we encountered hostiles-"

"Danno, what are 'tangos' and 'hostiles'?" Grace whispered to her father, even though it could be easily heard.

"Those are the bad guys, Monkey." He whispered back, then looked at Durbin to give him a silent reminder that there was a child at the table.

Durbin nodded to Danny and smiled at Grace before continuing, "Basically, we end up in this building, where we had to-"

"Wait a minute." Hawkes interupted. "Buiding? What building?"

"Well, there had been a building there. It had been bombed, so there was only part of it left for us to use-" Durbin attempted to continue.

"There was no building, Beamer." Hawkes interupted again.

"Yes there was, Hawkeye. Now would you stop interupting." Durbin insisted, but Hawkes kept insisting, too. Durbin looked to Steve, "Tell 'em, Smooth Dog." But Steve was too entertained by their bickering to stop them, so he just wordlessly shook his head.

"See." Hawkes said, "Smooth Dog knows we were in a fox hole and not no building!" He insisted.

"Well, yeah. There was a large hole in the ground inside the buildi-" Durbin conceeded.

"There was no building! There used to be a building. We were in a fox hole that was next to a 4x4 post with some scraps of what used to be siding still attached to it." Hawkes stated over the side-splitting laughter of Steve and Joe.

Durbin sighed heavily before starting over, "Fine." He drug out with an eye roll. "So, basically, we end up in this _fox hole_, where we had to hold off some hostiles." He pausing to see the smug smiles on his fellow SEALs faces. "The only thing was, we were down to two days worth of rations by then, and reinforcements were at least three days out. By day four, our food was gone and we were rationing what water we had left."

"Until-" Hawkes interjected, indicating a change in the stories direction.

"Until I was searching my pack for an amo clip and found a pack of Oreos." Durbin said, "It was one of those little packages that has 6 in it."

"My Mommy packs those in my lunch sometimes." Grace announced.

"Well, you see, Grace." Molly chimed in, leaning towards the little girl beside her, "Oreos have always been kind of an inside joke between Tiko and me."

"Why's that?" Grace asked.

"Because his skin is very dark, like the cookie part, and my skin is very light-"

"Like the inside part." Grace concluded with a smile.

Molly nodded, "That's right. So, whenever he would head off on a mission, I would sneak a little package of Oreos in his pack, so when he found them, he would remember that I love him and wanted him home safe." She leaned a bit closer to the little girl, "And you know what?"

"What?" Grace asked with wide eyes, as if she was going to learn some great secret.

"He's still a SEAL, and I still pack him Oreos." Molly told her and watched Grace giggle.

"So, how does this factor into Steve's birthday?" Charlie asked, feeling like some detail was still missing.

"Well first of all, by day four, we would have eaten anything any of us had found." Everyone laughed before Durbin continued, "So, once we'd each gotten an Oreo, I resumed my search for the amo clip and found another one. You see, it was my birthday too, so Molly had put in an extra packages of Oreos."

"Did I hear you say 'an Oreo'? As in singular?" Kamekona asked with a frown.

Durbin nodded, "Yes, Sir. There are always six men on a SEAL team." Grinning inwardly at the look of shock on the large man's face.

"So, today is your birthday, too?" Mary Ann asked.

"No, ma'am. My birthday was two days ago. When I found the Oreos, it was the day after my birthday and the day before Steve's." Durbin clarified.

"That was probably the only time you missed your actual birthday leave, wasn't it, Smooth Dog?" Hawkes asked.

Steve gave a silent nod before speaking, "Correct, Hawkeye. But it ended up working out better that way." He said, squeezing Catherine's hand.

"We were able to be in Dallas for the Texas vs. Penn State game during March Madness because of the delay." Catherine interjected.

"Yeah, I saw the picture of you two at the game and wondered how you managed that since March Madness doesn't start by the 10th. I was so glad Texas won that game." Malia said.

"Malia is a big basketball fan." Chin stated.

Steve was soon trying to conceal his amusement at one of Danny's rants over hearing 'it's classified', again, when he felt a tug at his left elbow. He turned to see Grace standing there.

"Hi, Grace. Did you get enough to eat?" He asked, seeing that she had her plate in her hands.

"I brought this for you." She stated, extending her hands and offering her plate to him. He noted an unfamiliar expression on her sweet face.

"Well, that's very nice of you, Grace, but why don't you eat it?" He asked, but she only continued looking at him and didn't answer. "Grace?"

It took a moment for her to speak, "Four days is a long time, Uncle Steve." She finally said and he realized her expression was one of concern.

He took in her words and realization dawned on him, "Oh, Grace. That was a long time ago, Sweetie." He explained gently with a hand on her shoulder, but she only continued to look at him with her big brown eyes. "Here," He said, taking the plate from her so she would focus on his words. But turning to set it down he realized there was no room.

"I got it, brah." Chin said and to took the plate from him.

With the plate out of the way, Steve took her little hands in his big ones. "That's very thoughtful of you, Grace, but those four days we spent in that fox hole happened a very long time ago." He explained as gently as he could.

"Are you sure, Uncle Steve?" Grace asked reluctantly. "'Cause you can have my enchelada if you're still hungry. 'Cause I got the last one, and they're really good." She offered.

He nodded, "Yeah, I'm sure. You were probably still in pre-school when that happened." He answered gently and hoping he had given her something to corrolate the time frame to. Sure that Chin had passed the plate back down to Grace's seat, he said, "Another thing I can guarantee you, is that Catherine makes the best encheladas, so why don't you go eat that one." He suggested, gesturing to her seat.

She looked at him cautiously for a moment before he nodded again to assure her.

"Okay." She said almost reluctantly.

Steve watched her pig tails swing as she turned to walk back around the table, then he turned his eyes to his partner, an expression on his face that belonged to a loving father.

Danny soon turned as his daughter approached her seat and he helped her swing her legs over the bench.

"Steve's right." Joe spoke up to change the subject, "I haven't had chicken encheladas that good since I was in Mexico."

"It looks like I should have made more." Catherine said, turning to see the nearly empty buffet.

"I think the only lack there is, is in our self control." Kono stated.

"I know I'm stuffed." Chin added, a claim that was repeated by several at the table.

Danny carried Grace to the couch soon after she had finshed eating and then had fallen asleep leaning against his arm. He grabbed more beers from the cooler and passed them out as he returned to the table.

The stories, joy, and laughter went late into the night, along with the occasional, 'It's classified!'

** HAWAII FIVE-0 **

In case you made the connection, yes, LT Tiko 'Beamer' Durbin is the same SEAL from my story "2-4-1". LT Benjamine 'Hawkeye' Hawkes is in it as well, he's just not mentioned by name.

The Texas vs. Penn State was played on March 16th that year, with Texas going all the way. Yes, I looked it up for accuracy.

There is one more chapter to this story.

In response to the Birthday Challenge I issued, these are the ones I am aware of that I hope you will read as well:  
><em>"My Birthday, My Way", by ircam<em>  
><em>"Annual Paint Ball Fight With The SEALs", by five0fan<em>  
><em>"Operation Birthday Party", by SmoothDog<em>  
><em>"Birthday Parties Are For Kids", by moonjat54<em>

Hopefully there will be lots more stories for Steve's birthday by March 10th!


	4. cards & more

First of all,... I just learned that it's the 100th anniversary of Oreos, and that there is a 'Birthday Cake' special edition of them out in stores. I had no idea about that when I included Oreos in my story, nor am I trying to promote them. Their mention in my story is pure coincodince.

When I issued a 'Steve's Birthday' challenge, I hadn't worried about making the deadline myself. But a dear friend has had a serious heart attack, so I have been spending a lot of time at the hospital recently, hence my barely making the deadline with this final chapter.

**HAWAII FIVE-0**

"Okay, okay, okay." Steve finally said, his hands raised in surrender at giving in at the insistance of several who wanted to hear about his last birthday party. "My mom was always the one to plan those. She gave us the best parties when Mary and I were kids. She loved to go over the top, themes and all." Steve began, pausing at the memory of his mother, "So my last party was when I turned fifteen, right before she died. Dad had turned this lanai here into barbecue central, and once my friends and I - which was pretty much the whole football team and the cheerleading squad - were full, we headed to the beach down there." He paused, nodding with his head at the beach behind his house. "There were rows and rows of beach and lawn chairs lined up in the sand. And up there, hanging from the railing was a huge screen." He added, pointing to a second lania that was off the upstairs master bedroom.

"A screen?" Chin saught to confirm. Steve nodded. "You mean, like a movie screen?"

Steve nodded again, "Like I said, my mom was into doing a theme for our parties and that party was done like a drive-in movie."

"Wow. You had a cool mom." Charlie stated.

"Well, ya gotta understand that me and most of my friends were fifteen, so getting our drivers lisence was a big deal at the time. So, mom thought the theme fit. We sat in chairs on the beach and watched Terminator 2: Judgement Day on this huge screen." Steve said.

"Terminator 2? How fitting. Even your mother knew what you'd be like as an adult." Danny teased.

Everyone laughed, including Steve before he continued. "She had a friend who's husband managed a theater, so he provided everything we needed, including all the tubs of popcorn we could eat. Terminator 2 had been released on VHS just days before the party, so we were all excited to see it."

When Steve was finished, all the guests took turns briefly telling about a favorite birthday party moment of their own.

Steve was not a materialistic person. What things he had around him were there for a puprose or evokeed a special memory. So Catherine had told everone 'no gifts, just bring a card'. As the guests had arrived earlier, it had been Mary's job to collect the cards. She had used clothes pins to hang them from one of the strands of lights, hence they had become part of the party decor.

"Here ya go, big brother." She said after retrieving the cards and handing the pile to Steve.

Steve read each card aloud before passing it around the table. "Wait a minute." He said, pausing at the name on one of the cards. "How did this one get here?"

"What is it?" Catherine asked, leaning towards him to see the name.

"It's from TIC." He informed her, tilting the envelope towards here.

"We brought that." Durbin spoke up, then all eyes were on him, "He couldn't make it, so he mailed it to us ahead of time so we could bring it with us."

"There are a few more we brought in there, too." Molly added.

Steve looked down at the next cards in the pile, "There's one from Tutu, and one from S2."

"Tutu?" Danny chimed in, an amused expression on his face.

"Careful how you say that, Williams. Tutu may be an unusual name in this country, but not where he's from." Hawkes half warned and half teased, and although he saw the man nod, he also saw him trying not to smirk. "Besides, Tutu is 6'6" and built like an oak tree. He could pound you into the ground like a tent stake without breaking a sweat." He warned.

"So, who's 'S2'?" Malia asked.

"Steve #2." He replied.

"Didn't that get confusing when you were out on missions?" Max asked.

"That's why the teams use nicknames or code names." Joe said.

"I see." Max said with a nod, "So, what was the other Steve's last name?" He asked, wondering if their last names were at least similar. But he got no answer. Then he realised that all four of the SEALs at the table were staring at him. "Oh. I see. Never mind." He added with a nervous laugh.

"S2 and Victoria are expecting another baby any day now." Molly said, both by way of explination and to help divert attention from Max, who was clearly uncomfortable at the moment.

"Another?" Steve repeated.

"Yeah, they had twin girls about four years ago." She clarified as she reached for another Oreo.

"He's hoping for a boy this time. Poor guy's outnumbered." Durbin said, causing all the men at the table to laugh.

"What kind of a nickname is 'TIC.'?" Chin wanted to know.

"T.I.C. was my '2IC'." Chin informed him. "It sort of morphed from that."

Once those cards were read and passed around, "Hey, there's one from Sam in here, too." Steve said in surprise as he looked back down at the two remaining cards.

"We didn't bring that one." Durbin said with a shrug.

"I did." Mary spoke up.

"What?" Steve asked in surprise. Wondering how on hearth his sister would meet a former SEAL buddy of his.

"There was a knock at my door yesterday, and when I answer it, there was this huge hunk of a man standing there asking if I'm your sister. I told him yes, after he finally identifies himself as Special Agent Sam Hanna as he's holding up his badge. Aparently he was planning on coming, but he said they had some big break in a case, so he gave me the card and asked me to give it to you." Mary explained.

Steve opened the cards from Sam and Mary as Catherine spoke up, "You have a Skype call with Sam tomorrow." She informed him with a hand on his arm.

Steve just smiled back at her. He couldn't believe all the work this wonderful woman had put into this party for him. He would have been happy just for them to be together, probably have dinner or go hinking, like they always did on his birthday. Like they had done the night before when she had tricked him.

"There's one more card, Uncle Steve." A sleepy grace announced from the doorway as she rubbed her eyes and headed his direction with something tucked under her arm.

"Hey, what are you doing awake, sleepy head?" He asked as she neared him.

Catherine had Grace take her seat as she collected the opened cards and hung them back up on the string of lights to display.

"I made a card for you, Uncle Steve." She said, stifling a yawn.

"That looks more like a book, Grace." Steve said as she handed it over.

"Well,... I was deciding how to make your card while Lieutenant Catherine was showing Mommy her photo album with all your birthday pictures in it." She said, gestring to the buffet where the photos had obviously been removed from said album and framed for display. "She said you hadn't had a birthday party for lots of years, so I decided to make you a card for each year you missed."

Steve smiled, "That's very thoughtful of you, Grace. Let's see what we've got here." He said, as she handed over what he discovered was a binder.

"Mommy scanned all the pictures from Lieutenant Catherine's album, so I could include a copy. I started with the first one; 2003, Montego Bay, Jamaica." Grace explained, carefully pronouncing the location, as she turned to the first page in the binder which showed the photo, with the date, and Steve's age that year, and the location marked on a map on the left side, accompanied by a hand-made card on the right side. "Jamaica is an island just like O'ahu is. So I made a map of the bay." Grace stated.

"That's wonderful, Grace." Steve gushed in praise, at seeing her artwork, then he turned the binder around to show everyone.

"2004 is next." Grace said, turning the page herself in excitement, "You turned 27 that year and were in Rio dee Janehro, Brazil."

"Rio de Janeiro." Steve repeated, correctly enunciating the words for her. "And look, there's the picture you drew of 'Lieutenant Catherine' and me on a sail boat." He added, then turned the binder around again, surprised at how eager everyone was to see another card the little girl had made.

"In 2005, you were in Frankfurt, Germany." Grace stated, again turning the page before Steve even had a chance, "I drew a picture of a castle on your card for that year."

"Those are the Ruins of Heidelberg Castle,... and you did a very good likeness in your drawing." Steve said, remembering that he was in the hospital that year and they didn't get to actually make it to the castle.

"Mommy helped me look up some stuff on the internet, so I could draw something on your card about where you were." Grace informed him.

"So what do we have for 2006?" Steve decided to ask and allow Grace to make this more of a presentation since she had relocated herself to his lap.

"You were in Dallas, Texas for your 29th birthday, so I drew the Reunion Tower on your card." Grace said.

"You put a lot of work into this, Grace." Steve said, quite impressed.

"Uh huh." She nodded in agreement. "My teacher found out what I was doing because I checked out a book on Italy at our school's library, so she told me that if I included the maps and drew something about that city that she would give me Art and Geography credit for it at school."

"So, my birthday cards turned into homework?" He asked.

"Sort of. But it was fun homework, Uncle Steve. I even got to take it for Show & Tell yesterday so my whole class got to see what I made you." She said.

"You mean everyone in your class got to see my birthday cards before I did?" He teased, causing Grace to giggle. "Let me think, 2007 was in Italy. So you probably drew the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Right?"

Grace giggled again, "Right, Uncle Steve." She said, turning the page for him.

Steve noted the photo of he and Catherine in their snow gear and on the ski slopes for his 30th birthday before turning the binder once again for everyone to see. He suddenly thought 'this is what a teacher must feel like at story time'.

"You were some place in Morocco the next year, Uncle Steve, but I don't know how to say this." Grace said, gesturing to her drawing for 2008.

"That is the Ait Ben Haddou Fortress in Melilla." Steve said, carefully sounding out the words for her. "That was a great place to sight see."

"I drew boats for the next one." She said as she turned the page.

"Those are the Long Tail boats common in Thailand." Steve said. "We also went hiking there." He added, gesturing to the photo of he and Catherine on a trail with their packs.

"I drew two things on your card for your next birthday." She said, "I couldn't decide between the Mayan Ruin and the Mexico City Cathedral."

"They're both wonderful places to visit." Steve said. "Almost as much fun as scuba diving." He added at seeing the photo of he and Catherine for that year.

"You spent last year here in Hawaii." Grace said as she turned the page. "So I drew a pineapple tree because Lieutenant Catherine said you two went to I'Lani's for ham & pineapple pizza."

"Yes, we did." Steve agreed as he turned the binder around for everyone to see. But he couldn't help but smirk at Danny as he did.

"You get two card for this year, Uncle Steve." Grace announced.

"I do? How come?" He asked.

"Well, since we all tricked you this year, you and Lieutenant Catherine went out to dinner last night." Grace said, gesturing to the photo from the previous night. They had asked a tourist take a picture of them when they went for a walk on the beach behind the restaurant where they had dined on ahi poke. "But your surprise party is tonight." She added, turning to the last page, "So I saved a place for a picture right here."

"A picture from tonight, huh." Steve said.

"That's right." Catherine said as she leaned over his shoulder from behind. "Grace saved a place on the last page for a copy."

"I'll go get the camera." Mary stated as she got up and left the table.

As Mary set up her camera on a tri-pod, Danny brushed Grace's hair to get rid of the bed head she had going on, while Kono directed everyone on where to sit. Some were sat atop of the table, others in front of them on the bench - with Steve and Catherine right in the middle - Danny and Grace stood at one end of the table, Kamekona on the other, and a few knelt down in front.

"Everyone say Steeee-ve!" Mary said as she set the timer on the camera and dashed to get in place next to her brother.

Ten minutes later Mary emerged from the house, a copy of the group photo fresh from the printer in hand, "Here you go, Grace."

"Thank you, Mary." Grace said with excitement, before adding the final touch to the binder, then turning to present it to the birthday boy.

"Thank you, Grace." He said to the little girl before turning to facae the rest of the party guests, "Thank you, everyone." This had been a wonderful birthday and he was touched deeply by their presence on his special day.

As Grace's gift made it's way through the crowd for closer inspection by everyone, the little girl was led back to the couch by her father who insisted she needed more sleep, as the hour was now very, very late.

It wasn't long before the party guests realised the hour as well and began to make their departures, and within the hour the house was nearly empty.

"You have him to thank." Mary said as Steve retuned from closing the door behind Danny who was carrying a sleeping Grace in his arms. "He helped me pay for my ticket to get here." She added at seeing the questioning look on her brother's face.

"Danny? Helped buy your ticket to get here?" He asked.

Mary nodded, "Yeah. I didn't have quite enough money and wasn't going to be able to come. But he sent me the rest of what I needed, so here I am."

Steve smiled at what his partner had done for him. The party had been extra special when he realised that his sister was there, too.

"And now, I'm taking off." Mary added as she picked up a small bag.

"What?" Steve asked, "But you just got here. Where are you going?"

"Relax, relax." She said, a calming hand to his arm. "I'm going to stay with Kono tonight, she's waiting for me out frong. But I'll be back tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?" He repeated, almost concerned that she wouldn't return.

"Yeah, tomorrow." She assured him, "Maybe we can have another picnic."

Steve smiled at the idea, "Yeah, okay." He said, relaxing and pulling her in for a hug, "But why aren't you staying here tonight. This is your house, too."

"Yeah, I know." She assured him again, then leaned slightly towards him, "But I think you have a birthday present to open." She whispered, then nodded her head towards the kitchen before heading toward the front door.

Steve looked over to where Catherine was busy putting away the leftovers. He smiled and headed towards the kitchen as he heard the front door close.

"Hey, birthday boy." Catherine said as he wrapped his arms around her from behind.

"Hey, Cath. I've, uh,... come for a present." He said in her ear as he rested his chin against her shoulder.

"A present?" She scoffed, "Wasn't two days of cooking enough?" She teased.

"Mhmm. More than enough." He said turning her in his arms. "So now I owe you a 'thank you' gift." He added before kissing her.

"Oh, you got that right, Sailor."

**HAWAII FIVE-0 **

Steve makes reference to I'Lani's in Season 1, Episode 3, which sparked Danny's wonderful rant about pineapple on pizza.

In reference to the lanai off the master bedroom, ... that is what it looks like in the aerial shots of the McGarrett house, so work with me on that one.

After spending so much time with my friend at the hospital this past week, I was in quite the rush to finish this chapter in time. I hope it did not disappoint.


End file.
